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Sunday, 1 November 2009

The Laws Don’t Work – 6

Another day, another advisor lost, this time voluntarily: Dr Les King has followed David Nutt out of the door, from the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. Meanwhile, Home Secretary Alan Johnson has been doing the media rounds with the line being that Nutt had crossed over into the political arena and was effectively campaigning against the Government.

Meanwhile, Nutt’s assertion, that cannabis is less harmful than alcohol or nicotine, has not been countered, and it’s entirely possible that it never will be. What may worry the more righteous part of the media, who remain ever vigilant against those who are less than totally “tough on drugs”, is that the assertion about cannabis relative to alcohol and nicotine may take hold – and that the electorate may start asking questions, perhaps even debating the issue in a rational manner.

This, as I noted when considering David Nutt’s dismissal, is what needs to happen if we are ever going to get away from the status quo, where illegal drugs are demonised, the debate is irrationally suppressed, and the misery of the many continues, while the criminally inclined few reap the benefits.